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Global Forecast System (GFS)

An animation of GFS simulated total atmospheric ozone concentration

An animated image of GFS simulated total atmospheric ozone concentration, forecast from 00 UTC on July 12, 2012, to July 16, 2012, at 00 UTC—a four day forecast—in three hourly intervals. The lowest concentrations of ozone on the planet reside over the Antarctic during this period. This image was produced with the Grid Analysis and Display System (GrADS) and ImageMagick.

The Global Forecast System (GFS) is a weather forecast model produced by the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (NCEP). Dozens of atmospheric and land-soil variables are available through this dataset, from temperatures, winds, and precipitation to soil moisture and atmospheric ozone concentration. The entire globe is covered by the GFS at a base horizontal resolution of 18 miles (28 kilometers) between grid points, which is used by the operational forecasters who predict weather out to 16 days in the future. Horizontal resolution drops to 44 miles (70 kilometers) between grid point for forecasts between one week and two weeks.

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The GFS model is a coupled model, composed of four separate models (an atmosphere model, an ocean model, a land/soil model, and a sea ice model), which work together to provide an accurate picture of weather conditions. Changes are regularly made to the GFS model to improve its performance and forecast accuracy. It is a constantly evolving and improving weather model. Gridded data are available for download through the NOAA National Operational Model Archive and Distribution System (NOMADS). Forecast products and more information on GFS are available at the GFS home page.

Prior to January 2003, the GFS was known as the GFS Aviation (AVN) model and the GFS Medium Range Forecast (MRF) model. GFS-AVN and MRF products are a collection from NCEP's NOAAPort. Grids, domains, run frequencies, and output frequencies have changed over the years.

Product Types

GFS Analysis

Model	Grid/Scale	Period of Record	Model Cycle	Output Timestep	Data Access Links
GFS-ANL	004 (0.5º) - Domain	18May2020–Present online, since 01Jan2007 in archive	4/day: 00, 06, 12, 18UTC	+00, (+03, +06 precipitation fields)	HTTPS TDS AIRS
GFS-ANL, Historical	004 (0.5º) - Domain	01Jan2007–15May2020 online	4/day: 00, 06, 12, 18UTC	+00, (+03, +06 precipitation fields)	HTTPS TDS AIRS
GFS-ANL	003 (1º) - Domain	18May2020–Present online, since 02Mar2004 in archive	4/day: 00, 06, 12, 18UTC	+00, (+03, +06 precipitation fields)	HTTPS TDS AIRS
GFS-ANL, Historical	003 (1º) - Domain	02Mar2004–15May2020 online	4/day: 00, 06, 12, 18UTC	+00, (+03, +06 precipitation fields)	HTTPS TDS AIRS

GFS Forecasts

Model	Grid/Scale	Period of Record	Model Cycle	Output Timestep	Data Access Links
GFS	004 (0.5º) - Domain	18May2020–Present online, since 10Oct2006 in archive	4/day: 00, 06, 12, 18UTC	3-hourly, +000 to +192 hours	HTTPS TDS AIRS
GFS, Historical	004 (0.5º) - Domain	1Aug2019–15May2020 online	4/day: 00, 06, 12, 18UTC	3-hourly, +000 to +192 hours	HTTPS TDS AIRS
GFS	003 (1º) - Domain	18May2020–Present online, since 15Feb2005 in archive	4/day: 00, 06, 12, 18UTC	3-hourly, +000 to +240 hours; 12-hourly, +252 to +384	HTTPS TDS AIRS
GFS, Historical	003 (1º) - Domain	16May2019–15May2020 online	4/day: 00, 06, 12, 18UTC	3-hourly, +000 to +240 hours; 12-hourly, +252 to +384	HTTPS TDS AIRS
GFS-AVN	003 (1º) - Domain	02Mar2004–15Feb2005	4/day: 00, 06, 12, 18UTC	3-hourly, +000 to +240 hours	AIRS

Legacy NCEP NOAAPort GFS-AVN and GFS-MRF Analysis and Forecasts

Model	Grid/Scale	Period of Record	Model Cycle	Output Timestep	Data Access Links
GFS-AVN	211 (81km) - Domain	01Jan2003–30Nov2004	4/day: 00, 06, 12, 18UTC	6-hourly, +000 to +180 hours; 12-hourly +192 to +240 hours	temporarily offline
GFS-AVN	213 (95km) - Domain	01Jan2003–30Nov2004	4/day: 00, 06, 12, 18UTC	6-hourly, +000 to +120 hours	temporarily offline
GFS-AVN	203 (190km) - Domain	01Feb2003–30Nov2004	4/day: 00, 06, 12, 18UTC	6-hourly, +000 to +120 hours	temporarily offline
GFS-AVN	202 (190km) - Domain	01Jan2003–30Nov2004	4/day: 00, 06, 12, 18UTC	6-hourly, +000 to +120 hours	temporarily offline
GFS-AVN	201 (381km) - Domain	01Jan2003–30Nov2004	4/day: 00, 06, 12, 18UTC	6-hourly, +000 to +120 hours	temporarily offline
GFS-MRF	205 (190km) - Domain	01Feb2003–30Nov2004	1/day: 00UTC	12-hourly, +000 to +240 hours	temporarily offline
GFS-MRF	203 (190km) - Domain	01Feb2003–30Nov2004	1/day: 00UTC	12-hourly, +000 to +240 hours	temporarily offline
GFS-MRF	202 (190km) - Domain	01Jan2003–30Nov2004	1/day: 00UTC	12-hourly, +000 to +240 hours	temporarily offline
GFS-MRF	201 (381km) - Domain	01Jan2003–30Nov2004	1/day: 00UTC	12-hourly, +000 to +240 hours	temporarily offline

Data Usage Notes

April 2003: GFS-AVN Grids Mislabeled

Messages for GFS-AVN will contain multiple records and one of the records will contain data from a different grid. In the sample below, the message contains two records. The first record contains data for grid 202; this is consistent with the WMO header. The octet 3 is "I" which indicates grid 202. However, record 2 contains data for grid 201 as indicated by octet 7 (value hex C9) in the PDS header. We have also found files with grid 203 data that also contain data from grid 201.

wgrib -V -o /dev/null -PDS -GDS YHIN25_KWBC_20030326_0000

rec 1:21:date 2003032600 HGT kpds5=7 kpds6=100 kpds7=250 levels=(0,250) grid=202 250 mb 108hr fcst:

HGT=Geopotential height [gpm]

timerange 10 P1 0 P2 108 TimeU 1 nx 65 ny 43 GDS grid 5 num_in_ave 0 missing 0

center 7 subcenter 0 process 96 Table 2

polar stereo: Lat1 7.838000 Long1 -141.028000 Orient -105.000000

north pole (65 x 43) Dx 190500 Dy 190500 scan 64

PDS(1..28)=

1: 00 00 1c 02 07 60 ca 80 07 64 00 fa 03 03 1a 00 00 01 00 6c

21: 0a 00 00 00 15 00 00 01

GDS(1..32)=

1: 00 00 20 00 ff 05 00 41 00 2b 00 1e 9e 82 26 e4 08 81 9a 28

21: 02 e8 24 02 e8 24 00 40 00 00 00 00

min/max data 9469.1 10960.4 num bits 14 BDS_Ref 94691 DecScale 1 BinScale 0

rec 2:5018:date 2003032600 HGT kpds5=7 kpds6=100 kpds7=250 levels=(0,250) grid=201 250 mb 108hr fcst:

HGT=Geopotential height [gpm]

timerange 10 P1 0 P2 108 TimeU 1 nx 65 ny 65 GDS grid 5 num_in_ave 0 missing 0

center 7 subcenter 0 process 96 Table 2

polar stereo: Lat1 -20.826000 Long1 -150.000000 Orient -105.000000

north pole (65 x 65) Dx 381000 Dy 381000 scan 64

PDS(1..28)=

1: 00 00 1c 02 07 60 c9 80 07 64 00 fa 03 03 1a 00 00 01 00 6c

21: 0a 00 00 00 15 00 00 01

GDS(1..32)=

1: 00 00 20 00 ff 05 00 41 00 41 80 51 5a 82 49 f0 08 81 9a 28

21: 05 d0 48 05 d0 48 00 40 00 00 00 00

min/max data 9292.3 11006 num bits 15 BDS_Ref 92923 DecScale 1 BinScale 0

Publication References

None

Miscellaneous Documentation